Read Online Under the Boardwalk by Barbara Cool Lee - Free Book Online
Authors: Barbara Cool Lee
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day yesterday. I didn't want you to think we're always so hard on our guests."
"Really, man," agreed Chris. "We don't usually run guests into ditches—especially not when they're driving our own cars!" He laughed at his own joke.
Hallie looked up at Kyle. His back was turned, but she had a feeling he wasn't talking about the car accident.
He flipped the tortilla onto a plate, topped it with more eggs for himself, and then came and sat down with them.
"You know," Chris said, his expression serious for once, "about that accident. I was wondering if maybe we could call Windy—not that I'm worried or anything," he explained quickly, "but just to see how she's doing."
"I tried," Kyle said. "Her phone's turned off. Now before you get all worried again," he said when Hallie started to speak. "That's not surprising if she's either in the mission church, or out in the countryside somewhere looking up old grave sites. Either she turned it off out of respect for where she was, or she's out of reach of a cell tower and is saving the battery."
"Well," Hallie said reluctantly, "I guess."
"I know," Kyle said firmly. "There's nothing to worry about."
They all sat and stared at their plates for a minute.
All of yesterday's fears came back to Hallie all of a sudden, and she felt her body tense up again as an image of waking in the car, hurt and alone, flashed through her mind. "But what if there is something wrong?" she asked.
"Come on now," Kyle said. "Don't let Chris get you all riled up."
He glared at the boy, who started shoveling eggs into his mouth without another word.
She nodded. She thought back one more time to yesterday, trying, as she had repeatedly, to dredge up that missing memory, to think of something, anything, that filled in the gap between the last time she saw Windy and waking up in the Little Guy. She couldn't think of anything. "She was fine," she said aloud, after mentally retracing her steps. "She must have given me the keys to the Bug. She was happy. Nothing was wrong with her. She was just... Windy. You know?"
Chris chuckled. "We know what you mean. Good ole Guinevere Robles Madrigal. Giggle Girl."
She nodded her head absently, still thinking.
Chris dug into his eggs again, apparently satisfied.
"There's nothing," she finally said, "not a thing I can think of that seems wrong—not until I woke up in the car."
"It's like a jigsaw puzzle with one big piece missing," Kyle said. "Unless we can find the truck with the gray primer paint that hit the Beetle, we can't know what really happened."
"Maybe the sheriff was right," she said. "Maybe it was just an accident." She wasn't sure what to believe anymore.
"Right," Kyle said. "So let's all relax and finish our breakfast."
"Okay." Chris's smile resurfaced. He seemed satisfied. "And maybe we can get the bug fixed before Windy gets back. I'll get off work at noon and come home to help you."
Kyle chuckled. "That'll be a first."
They all went back to eating. The mood had lightened, as if saying all of their worries out loud had cleared the air.
"Yup," Chris said. "We'll just get the bug fixed up like new, and maybe, just maybe, Windy won't kill you when she gets back." He grinned at Hallie.
"Thanks a lot."
"Don't mention it. Just another part of the famous Madrigal hospitality."
Hallie wasn't sure how much more of the "famous Madrigal hospitality" she could handle.
~*~
A half hour later Kyle's red pickup turned onto the road leading to the amusement park. The truck passed under an arch that read "Pajaro Beach Amusement Park: Your Fun in the Sun."
"Fun in the Fog, more like it," Chris cracked, but Hallie felt a shiver of anticipation as Kyle's truck threaded a line between two of the roller coaster's red-and-white support towers. She looked up through the windshield as they drove under and saw that the towers rose up to disappear in the gray mist above them like a mountaintop lost in the clouds.
Kyle turned left and went through the gate
"Really, man," agreed Chris. "We don't usually run guests into ditches—especially not when they're driving our own cars!" He laughed at his own joke.
Hallie looked up at Kyle. His back was turned, but she had a feeling he wasn't talking about the car accident.
He flipped the tortilla onto a plate, topped it with more eggs for himself, and then came and sat down with them.
"You know," Chris said, his expression serious for once, "about that accident. I was wondering if maybe we could call Windy—not that I'm worried or anything," he explained quickly, "but just to see how she's doing."
"I tried," Kyle said. "Her phone's turned off. Now before you get all worried again," he said when Hallie started to speak. "That's not surprising if she's either in the mission church, or out in the countryside somewhere looking up old grave sites. Either she turned it off out of respect for where she was, or she's out of reach of a cell tower and is saving the battery."
"Well," Hallie said reluctantly, "I guess."
"I know," Kyle said firmly. "There's nothing to worry about."
They all sat and stared at their plates for a minute.
All of yesterday's fears came back to Hallie all of a sudden, and she felt her body tense up again as an image of waking in the car, hurt and alone, flashed through her mind. "But what if there is something wrong?" she asked.
"Come on now," Kyle said. "Don't let Chris get you all riled up."
He glared at the boy, who started shoveling eggs into his mouth without another word.
She nodded. She thought back one more time to yesterday, trying, as she had repeatedly, to dredge up that missing memory, to think of something, anything, that filled in the gap between the last time she saw Windy and waking up in the Little Guy. She couldn't think of anything. "She was fine," she said aloud, after mentally retracing her steps. "She must have given me the keys to the Bug. She was happy. Nothing was wrong with her. She was just... Windy. You know?"
Chris chuckled. "We know what you mean. Good ole Guinevere Robles Madrigal. Giggle Girl."
She nodded her head absently, still thinking.
Chris dug into his eggs again, apparently satisfied.
"There's nothing," she finally said, "not a thing I can think of that seems wrong—not until I woke up in the car."
"It's like a jigsaw puzzle with one big piece missing," Kyle said. "Unless we can find the truck with the gray primer paint that hit the Beetle, we can't know what really happened."
"Maybe the sheriff was right," she said. "Maybe it was just an accident." She wasn't sure what to believe anymore.
"Right," Kyle said. "So let's all relax and finish our breakfast."
"Okay." Chris's smile resurfaced. He seemed satisfied. "And maybe we can get the bug fixed before Windy gets back. I'll get off work at noon and come home to help you."
Kyle chuckled. "That'll be a first."
They all went back to eating. The mood had lightened, as if saying all of their worries out loud had cleared the air.
"Yup," Chris said. "We'll just get the bug fixed up like new, and maybe, just maybe, Windy won't kill you when she gets back." He grinned at Hallie.
"Thanks a lot."
"Don't mention it. Just another part of the famous Madrigal hospitality."
Hallie wasn't sure how much more of the "famous Madrigal hospitality" she could handle.
~*~
A half hour later Kyle's red pickup turned onto the road leading to the amusement park. The truck passed under an arch that read "Pajaro Beach Amusement Park: Your Fun in the Sun."
"Fun in the Fog, more like it," Chris cracked, but Hallie felt a shiver of anticipation as Kyle's truck threaded a line between two of the roller coaster's red-and-white support towers. She looked up through the windshield as they drove under and saw that the towers rose up to disappear in the gray mist above them like a mountaintop lost in the clouds.
Kyle turned left and went through the gate
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